On Plot Motifs in the Epics “Maadai-Kara” and “Bum-Erdeni”

Introduction. The article is devo­ted to the comparative analysis of plot motifs of the Altai and Oirat epic texts belonging to two epic traditions, each of which has both common features and characteristic features inherent in each of them. The purpose of the study is to update the tradition of comparative-contrastive study of the Turkic-Mongolian epic. The relevance of the study is dictated by the need to analyze the common and specific features of two different epic traditions that developed and existed for a long period in neighboring regions of Central Asia. Materials and me­thods. The material for the study was the epic “Maadai-Kara” from the repertoire of the Altai storyteller A.G. Kalkin (1973) and the epic “Bum-Erdeni” of the Oirat storyteller Parchen (1923). To identify common features of the Turkic-Mongolian epic tradition during the period of dominance of shamanic practices, the synchronic method of research was used. To highlight the features characteristic of each epic tradition, the diachronic method was used, which made it possible to trace the changes that occurred in a specific ethnocultural situation. Results. The main plot motifs (miraculous birth, hero’s initiation, overcoming obstacles, participation in marriage competitions, wedding feast, etc.), which formed the plot-content model of each of the two texts, are evidence of the common sources of their formation in archaic times. The characteristic features inherent in one or another epic tradition are already associated with different cultural and historical circumstances in which the further development of the epic tradition continued in later stages. In the structural and content model of the legends, it is necessary to note the obvious mythological component of the Altai epic, preserved in the motif of the hero’s departure to the other world and the final part of the legend, according to which the hero and his betrothed, having turned into stars, ascend to the heavens. The Oirat legend is characterized by the saturation of the content with Buddhist elements and a noticeable departure from mythological ideas.

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